Study: City of San Diego needs 10 new fire stations

But first step is to fully staff existing stations by ending “brownouts”

The top priorities include new stations and equipment for Home Avenue, Paradise Hills, College Area, Skyline and Encanto. The nine remaining areas would be covered by roving engines and fast response squads — each a two-person crew — that would be capable of responding to emergency service calls and transporting a patient when no ambulance is available.

The units also could be housed in smaller buildings and be moved depending on population and emergency calls throughout the day.

The report estimates $100 million in capital costs and $40 million annually to operate.

Put simply, Councilman Tony Young said, the city doesn’t have the money.

“We should maximize the ability to provide services that we have now,” Young said. “We can create lots of plans, but we need to identify funding sources.”

Frank De Clercq, head of the city’s firefighters union, said it all boils down to priorities.

“The core function of this government is to protect its citizens and I consider this to be the blueprint for safe and successful outcomes for the citizens of San Diego,” he said. “We should insist on adopting this and laying out a plan moving forward.”